IUSA-GPSO split hurts student interests

While Paul Rohwer's guest column was interesting with his views on the goals of higher education, he mistakenly attempts to wedge a divide between undergrad and graduate students by faulting IUSA. As a three-year veteran of IUSA, I learned during my tenure that the University bureaucracy works very slowly. For example, the red musical clocks were first proposed by IUSA in the summer of 2000 and have only recently been installed. While it is still early in the school year, the Hoosier ticket has already accomplished many tasks. They have cut the budget by $20,000 through cost savings and increasing efficiencies. The readership program has grown 33 percent by adding the Indianapolis Star. A library book drop box was finally added after three years of IUSA work. The Hoosier ticket also secured the reversal of the charge for Olympic sports by the athletic department through successful negotiations. Perhaps most impressively, the Legislative Relations Office is working very successfully to secure tax-free textbooks. This includes a pledge by a state senator to support, and possibly author, the legislation. \nDuring the two years that I was co-director of the Legislative Relations Office, we were unable to make nearly as much progress for tax-free textbooks. The University administration respects bold student leaders who are professional and have a clearly stated agenda. With this combination, the current IUSA executives should accomplish a lot, even if the University bureaucracy takes longer for these results to actually be seen. \nOne thing is for certain: undergraduate and graduate students need to work together to get anything really important accomplished. Student concerns are received more favorably when an issue is the consensus of the entire student body and not just a segment of the student population of undergrads or graduate students. While GPSO is open to only graduate students, there are graduate representatives positions in the IUSA student body congress. Mr. Rohwer himself could attend an IUSA congressional session and attempt to make the changes he feels need to be made, rather than write about them in guest columns in the IDS.